No Business Like Show Buisness
by waiting4morning
Summary: A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. Shorts, drabbles, and longer one shots from Skip Beat. There will be spoilers for the manga, but I'll warn at the top of each chapter. Update! Sometime in the future... Kuon and Kyoko have their first big fight. Flufftastic.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: **Takes place in Vol 1. Constructive criticism always welcome!

* * *

That first week, Kyoko missed Sho so badly she could hardly breathe. She was still angry with him, so furious she couldn't see straight, but her treacherous heart missed him anyway.

But then again, she'd been missing him for a very long time. For the past several months, Sho hadn't been staying at the apartment more than one night a week, and even then, he got in late and left early. Kyoko ground her teeth when she remembered what excuses she had made for him, the lying, lazy, cruel...

No, no. Kyoko clamped down on the anger that threatened to rise from her like a banshee. She'd never get to sleep if she started that again.

When had Sho stopped being her friend and became that monster who so callously used her like a pair of disposable chopsticks?

Kyoko turned over on her pallet, pummeling her pillow into shape. Sho's betrayal had brought some honesty to her past memories of him. She'd always been half in love with him, even as a child. Of course, he'd been her only playmate for as long as she could remember. But even then he'd been selfish.

Not always though. There were times when he had been her friend. Even as late as last month, she'd wanted to see the new Harry Potter movie. Sho had made fun of her, but the night of the movie, he showed up beside her, dressed in a ball cap, a bad wig, and sunglasses. His condition of seeing the movie with her was her silence, which she had gladly given. She'd been so happy to have him sitting beside her that she barely remembered the movie.

Kyoko's throat tightened and she sat straight up in bed, the blankets pooling around her waist. No. No, she couldn't do this anymore. She _wouldn't_. If she remembered the few times Sho had been kind, she would become That Stupid Girl again. She would abandon her plan for revenge, beg Shotaro to take her back, and the cycle would repeat itself. Kyoko inhaled a deep breath. Never again. She would focus on her anger, focus on her plans, and when she had beaten Shotaro, when he was begging to be noticed by her, to have her back in his life, she would smile sweetly, toss her hair back and say: "NOT A CHANCE, YOU SMUG SON OF A-"

"Kyoko-chan? Are you okay?" Okamisan's querulous voice drifted up the stairs of the Darumaya.

Kyoko clamped her hands over her mouth, realizing she'd been shouting that last part of her fantasy out loud.

"Ah, yes, ma'am! Just... just a bad dream is all."

The next morning, she stood in front of the LME agency and took a deep breath. "No going back now," she said and marched through the doors.


	2. Onsen

**Spoilers for chapter 160.  
**

* * *

Kanae sighed with exasperation as Kyoko squealed at the sight of the _ryokan_, clapping her hands in excitement.

"It's just an inn," the dark-haired girl grumbled, shouldering her bag as they waited for the rest of the cast of Box R to catch up. "I thought you grew up in one?"

"Yes, but I haven't been to an onsen since the filming of Dark Moon!" Kyoko said, her eyes shining with the light of enthusiasm. "It's going to be so relaxing! And with Moko-san here, it's bound to be even better!"

Kanae grumbled a bit more and hurried up to the inn to hide the smile she felt lurking behind her characteristic scowl. She really did owe Kyoko, however. The female cast of the Box R drama was celebrating with a day trip to the _ryokan_. Kanae, of course, wasn't in the cast, but Kyoko had extended the invitation and the director had agreed.

One of the older girls was taking charge as they filed in and removed their shoes. She spoke to the proprietor and turned to the assembled young women who were donning house slippers.

"Toshiro-san says our rooms are ready. I don't know about you, but I want to drop off my things and have a nice long soak."

The girls agreed with enthusiasm.

Kyoko turned wide, gleaming eyes to Kanae.

"Moko-saaan, will you be my roommate?"

"Why do you have to ask such a question as if proposing marriage?" Kanae scowled, but remembered that she owed Kyoko and assented. She didn't even push Kyoko away when the other girl launched at her with one of her rugby-style hugs.

#

The girls noisily entered the washroom in the yukatas provided by the _ryokan._ Kanae was already showering off in one of the open stalls, her back to the chattering girls. Perhaps feeling that she'd let Kyoko have too much affection, Kanae had hurried through unpacking and had left their room before Kyoko had a chance to even put her bags down.

Kyoko smiled happily and chose the stall next to Kanae's, folding her yukata and placing it in the basket provided. Kyoko scrubbed and hummed, glad to have a break from work. As much as she'd come to love acting, it was nice to be able to be herself for a little bit. She'd come straight from Mio into Natsu and then playing Setsu at the same time. She had no idea how draining it could be. How did Tsuruga-san do it? He constantly had two or more jobs going on at the same time. And even now as Cain Heel he was playing a role within a role. She sighed, using a brush to scrub her feet. Tsuruga-san was so much above her. Maybe someday she'd be able to act on the same level as he. But getting to act opposite him as Setsu was almost as good. She smiled as she remembered the last time they'd been on set together. Their act was deepening. They shared smirks and glances like real siblings would. The fact that this seemed to enrage Murasame-san was an added bonus.

Kyoko shook her head. She didn't come to an onsen just to think about work. She wouldn't think of acting, of Setsu, or Tsuruga-san. Tonight was about relaxation to the extreme!

"Senpai, is there a reason you're posing like a superhero?"

Chiori's curious voice broke Kyoko out of her reverie and she realized that she'd been brandishing the showerhead like a sword with her other hand fisted on her hip.

"Nope! I'm just excited about the onsen," Kyoko said with a grin, refusing to even get depressed by how big the other girl's breasts were. _Plain and no sex appeal,_ a small inner Shotaro-voice hissed before she ruthlessly squashed it.

The Box R girls and Kanae filed out of the washroom, towels slung over their shoulders, or already folded on their heads. The hot water springs were artfully created pools of stone with a privacy lattice overhead and a high wooded fence on the left that separated the women's bathing area from the men's.

Kyoko eased into the steaming water with a sigh of satisfaction, sinking lower and lower until her chin just touched the surface of the water. The hot water seeped into her skin, loosening tense muscles she didn't even know she had. Even Kanae seemed relaxed, that little furrow between her brows smoothed out for the first time since Kyoko had known her.

Talk among the girls was quiet at first, as they all adjusted to to the water and enjoyed simply soaking it in.

_Setsu would enjoy this,_ Kyoko thought absently, eyes closed._ She kind of likes the finer things and nii-san no doubt would pay for it if she asked_. She could imagine the proprietor's nervousness if the Heel siblings showed up at the door and grinned to herself. Of course, they were the type of weird siblings who would go to one of the rural traditional onsen that had mixed bathing...

Kyoko's eyes snapped open. The heat of the water was suddenly overwhelming.

"Mogami-san, are you okay? Your face is really red," Chiori said, coming close to peer at her.

"I'm fine. J-just fine. I, uh..."

"It's a hot water spring," Kanae said in a dry voice, not even bothering to open her eyes. "of course her face is red."

"I thought she might have heard us talking about a new star," Chiori said with a small smile. "He's from a different agency, but Keiko-san says he's really cute."

"Murasame-kun!" sighed the aforementioned Keiko, fanning herself dramatically as she leaned against the edge of the pool. "I love that bad-boy aura."

Kyoko snorted before she stop herself.

Keiko gave her a suspicious glance. "What was that for?"

"He's a cheese-brain," Setsu said. Kyoko clapped a hand over her mouth. This was the second time Setsu's character had interfered with her. She really needed to get a better grip on that girl! Of course, she had sorta been in Setsu-mode just then... thinking about what nii-san would do at an onsen...

Keiko looked enraged, but Chiori merely curious. "Have you met Murasame-san, senpai?"

"No, of course not," Kyoko said, thinking rapidly. She couldn't tell the truth. The "dangerous mission" was an absolute secret! "I... I just heard... gossip, is all... when... when I was filming a PV." She clamped her mouth shut before she mentioned Shotaro. But the PV was the best explanation. None of the girls here had any connection to it and wouldn't be able to contradict her. She hoped the other girls would let it go, but Kanae was eyeing her with suspicion.

"Speaking of Murasame-san..." said a giggling voice, "I think he's here!"

The girls all gasped and squealed in alternating voices of excitement and shock. The girl who had spoken was Hinata, a buxom girl who was currently by the wooden fence, peering at something.

"Are you... are you peeping at the men?" Keiko gasped, face red.

Hinata grinned. "I didn't intend to, but this knot on the fence just popped out and I accidentally looked ..." She made a show of gazing the small hole and made a noise of appreciation. "Hmm. Murasame-san sure has a nice back... among other things."

With nervous giggles, Keiko and a number of the other girls clambered out, crowding around Hinata's spot at the fence.

"Of all the fool things," Kanae growled, fingering the towel on top of her head. "Don't they know that a hole looks both ways?" She stood. "I'm going to tell the proprietor so they can repair it."

"I don't think that's Murasame-kun," Keiko said, sounding disappointed.

"Yeah, that looks more like Tsuruga Ren to me," said Chiori. "And... yeah, there's Yashiro-san, his manager."

Kanae froze, turning to look back at Kyoko. She wasn't the only one. Most everyone at L.M.E. knew the that she was close to Tsuruga Ren, though most were too polite to ask her directly about it. But Kanae could see the other girls' faces lighten with expectation. As for Kyoko, her face twisted as she tried to adapt an expression of supreme nonchalance. Then something switched and her expression changed as if she'd donned a mask. Kanae, who knew her better than the other girls, saw Kyoko's character face come on. She'd retreated into a Natsu or something to deal with the curious gazes of the other girls.

"Aren't you going to come look at your senpai, Kyoko-san?" called Hinata with a giggle.

"Why should I? I came to relax, not play peeping Tom." Kyoko said in a unconcerned voice, drifting her fingers in the water, and suddenly seeming a lot more relaxed than she had a moment before.

"Because he's hot, that's why," Hinata said with a grin, tilting her head. "You know, I'm sure I've caught you looking at him funny during a shoot. I'm surprised you don't want to come over here and take a peek."

Kyoko gave her a bored look. "It's nothing I haven't seen before."

In the silence that followed, Kanae lunged at Kyoko just in time. The shouts and demands for explanations descended on them as Kyoko, face rapidly melting into her typical "what in the world did I do?!" expression, followed Kanae at a near run into the washroom, slamming the door against the shrieks from outside.

An inn attendant in the washroom looked scandalized at all the noise. Kanae offered a short, apologetic bow, and dragged Kyoko to their baskets, draping a yukata around her friend's shaking shoulders.

"What did I do? What did I do?" she moaned under her breath. "He's going to kill me and then resurrect me so he can kill me again. I'm going to be a zombie! Twice!"

Kanae grabbed her own robe, tied it around her waist with an impatient motion and pulled Kyoko back to their room, the short-haired girl still moaning the whole way.

"You," Kanae said, as she shut the sliding door, and turned to face the trembling Kyoko, "have a lot of explaining to do."

"B-but, M-Moko-san..."

Kanae held up a hand and the other girl fell silent, her face fearful. "First, though, we gotta come up with a good story for what you just did. Because they're going to be coming soon demanding to know what you meant." She tapped her mouth with a finger, pacing as Kyoko immediately sat _seiza,_ looking up with wide eyes as if Kanae was her angelic rescuer.

"I got it," she said, snapping her fingers. "There's that one scene in Dark Moon. Katsuki is shirtless when Mizuki stumbles into the room, right?"

Kyoko frowned. "Yes... but Mio wasn't in that scene. I don't even think I was on set the day that was filmed."

"Doesn't matter," Kanae said, waving a dismissive hand. "Those hyenas won't know that."

Kyoko's expression cleared. "Ah, so I can just pretend that's what I meant." She looked relieved.

Kanae cocked her head, hearing footsteps coming their direction. "They're coming. Better get your game face on."

Kyoko nodded, spine straightening and looking determined as the flood of girls came chattering in.

#

"Glad that's over with," Kyoko said, swiping the back of her wrist over her forehead. She'd literally broken out in sweat at the girls' interrogation. But she'd done well. With a nervous laugh, she'd told the wide-eyed girls about the shirtless Katsuki scene and that seemed to satisfy most of them. Only Hinata looked suspicious, but she didn't say anything and left with the rest of them to their respective rooms.

Kyoko stood only to see Kanae looking at her speculatively.

"What?" the other girl asked, biting her lip.

"You've actually seen Tsuruga-san naked?"

"I didn't mean to!" she wailed, covering her crimson face with her hands. "But I didn't look anywhere except his face I swear, and... Moko-san why are you laughing?"

Kanae wiped away genuine tears of mirth. "Because," she gasped, "you are the only fool woman in the entire world who would walk in on Tsuruga Ren naked and only look at his face."


	3. Kuon

**Spoiler warning for chapter 205! **This probably won't happen, but I needed a fanfic fix before the next chapter came out so I wrote it myself. :D

Also, apologies for any mistakes. This is un-betaed, though I've done my best to do a line edit. I don't really have any connection to the online Skip Beat fandom community yet, so I don't have anyone to ask to do a beta-check for me. Send me a PM if you're interested! (And you'd only be doing the stories here for a start. I don't have anything else written.)

* * *

Kyoko stared at him, and for what felt like an eternity, Kuon stared back.

He'd be lying if he said he hadn't dreamed of this moment. How many times in their guise of living together as the Heel siblings had he secretly wished for this revelation? Perhaps she'd notice his blond roots (though it was highly unlikely given that he kept a meticulous watch on his treacherously un-Japanese hair). Maybe one day he'd lose his brown contacts, she would comment on his strange eye color, and he would finally come to the point where he could reveal his true self. Not Kuon the angry teenager fueled only by rage and hurt, but Kuon who'd been her friend, Kuon the boy who still believed in dreams. Kuon the man who she'd helped unearth. He wanted to tell her so badly it was like living with a constant ache.

It was strange what love could do to a man. He'd spent the better part of his professional life hiding his true identity and appearance with no inclination to ever tell anyone the truth. But then Kyoko tripped into his life and over the past few months, the urge to tell her, to reveal himself became stronger and stronger. He didn't want to hide from her any more. But how to get to that point?

In his surprise, he nearly said her name aloud. That would do it. He could say her name, she would hear and recognize his voice. But then he saw her face, heard her mouthing the name of her childhood fairy friend "Corn." And he couldn't do it.

But... he had an idea... a slim hope of an idea. One that would require all his subtlety as an actor.

#

Kyoko was in paradise. The sun warmed her skin yet the breeze from the ocean was mild and cooling. And... Kyoko snuggled further into the side of the beautiful creature beside her. Corn turned to smile at her, his arm holding her close.

He still hadn't spoken other than the question written in the sand, but she didn't care. Her friend was alive and well. How often had she prayed for him? Had prayed for this moment? It was better than her fantasies.

And yet... there was something achingly familiar about him. She'd chalked it up at first to her simply recognizing him, but it was more than that. Her childhood memories of Corn had a very dream-like quality to them. She remembered her feelings and impressions, not details, really. But this Corn seemed so familiar... the way he brushed his hair out of his eyes, the way his mouth curved in a smile...

As she was looking at him, he leaned over and pressed a kiss on top of her head.

_Setsu blinked in surprise as nii-san kissed her head. He wasn't usually so publicly affectionate... but still, it warmed her heart and she smiled up at him, receiving one of his rare, but glorious smiles in return._

Corn was writing in the sand again. "I have to go," it said, breaking Kyoko out of the memory. He stood, helping her to her feet and brushed sand from his trousers.

"But why?" Kyoko said, heart thudding painfully against her ribs. "I only just found you again!"

"Because," he wrote again, "there's someone you should meet." He smiled down at her, and her knees went wobbly, though again she was conscious of a strange feeling of recognition. It suddenly hit her what the feeling was like: it was similar to seeing an actor from a favorite movie in a different show with different makeup. Who did Corn remind her of?

Kyoko tried not to cry as he pulled her against him, and she clung to him, clutching his damp shirt in her fists like she had when nii-san had given her a hug that one time... marveling at how tall he was, how neatly she fit into his embrace... Kyoko's eyes snapped open against Corn's chest. _No, it couldn't be_... she exhaled slowly. She was being stupid again, that one personality error she could somehow never eradicate.

Corn tipped her head back with a finger under her chin and before she could completely grab onto the thought what was banging around in the back of her mind, before she could even grasp what was happening, he had lowered his head and touched his mouth to hers.

#

Kuon felt Kyoko go stiff in shock, her mouth unresponsive. But he'd expected this. She was innocent, inexperienced. He didn't kiss her like Cain Heel would have, with bruising pressure and a hint of teeth, nor like Tsuruga Ren would have, with passion kept barely in check, but he kissed her like... like she was his first kiss. Then again, she was to some extent. He hadn't loved his last girlfriend—a woman whose face he could barely remember—and he hadn't loved her predecessor either. But Kyoko... Kyoko was so much more.

He pulled away just as she was starting to relax. Her cheeks were cherry-blossom pink, her eyes large and wide in her small face. Her expression, though, was strange: she looked almost... guilty?

Still, in keeping with his plan, he deliberately looked over his shoulder, exposing the left side of his neck to her. The bite mark that Setsu had given him had faded by now, of course, but Kyoko didn't know that, and hadn't noticed when he'd dug into his neck with his fingernails, intent on renewing the mark when they were sitting on the beach.

When he looked back, Kyoko's face had drained of color, and her eyes were suspiciously bright.

"T-Tsugara... san?"

#

Kuon bowed low in apology. "Mogami-san," he said in his normal voice. He saw her eyes go wide with recognition. "I would like to introduce myself... Hizuri Kuon."

Kyoko still wasn't speaking, hands partially covering her mouth. But at least she hadn't run away from him. He smiled. There had been a time when she would have, but she'd grown up so much over the past year.

He pressed on. "Once upon a time," he said searching her face, "a little boy met a crying little girl by the river. They became friends and she couldn't quite pronounce his name right." He couldn't stop the smile that tugged on his lips and took a step forward. "Then, the boy grew up and... through some adventures and twists and turns... he decided to become someone else: Tsuruga Ren."

Kyoko's mouth opened and shut several times as if she was debating on what to say. "How..." she said finally, fingers twisting in the fabric of her shirt. "How long have you known?"

Kuon rubbed the back of his neck with an embarrassed laugh. "Since that day you dropped your 'magic' stone, and I found it for you by the stairs."

Her eyes grew even bigger. "That long ago?" Then her face twisted in a scowl. "And you didn't tell me?"

Kuon scuffed his sandals in the sand. "Well... you loved that memory of your fairy friend Corn. I... well, I guess I didn't have the heart to take that away from you."

Kyoko shook her head with an exasperated sigh. Then, looking shy, she look a step closer, reaching out and twining her fingers with his. "Hizuri-san..." she said, trying the name out.

"Kuon? Please?"

Kyoko blushed at the invited intimacy in only using his given name. "Kuon," she whispered, and he squeezed her fingers.

"Kuon," she said again, still blushing, but looking determined, "a real, living person... is worth more than even ten million fairies." She reached her free hand up, gently tracing her fingers along his jaw. Kuon closed his eyes briefly, turning his face to kiss her palm.

"I never thought I would hear the day you'd prefer me over a fairy," he said with a grin. He couldn't seem to stop smiling.

"Well," she said in a serious voice, "they have to leave to go back to fairyland, so you don't get to spend a lot of time with them. But you... you're here and you're... not leaving?" Her voice lifted at the last couple of words, turning the statement into a question.

"No," he replied, pulling her into his embrace again. "Never."


	4. Your Hand in Mine

Another late night in showbiz.

Kyoko slurped her ramen in cheerful triumph. Tsuruga Ren, who sat opposite her in the small diner, seemed complacent enough now, but he'd put up his usual argument about eating. Eventually, Kyoko had won. She'd even gotten to pick the restaurant.

Oddly enough, however, the one thing she couldn't sway him on was paying for the meal. She'd wanted to use her own money, but he'd smoothly stepped in with one of his more intense smiles and told the waitress that he would be taking care of the check. The effect of that particular smile was still affecting the poor waitress. Kyoko could almost see little cherubs dancing around her head as she scurried to and fro among the other tables.

"I still think I should be paying for my own meal," she grumbled, deftly picking a piece of konbu with her chopstick and putting it on top of a sliced boiled egg.

"I have a lot of money, Mogami-san, and very few people whom I like to spend it on," Ren said, a normal smile lifting the corner of his mouth. "Humor me, please?"

Kyoko felt a slow flush spread across her cheeks, and masked it—she hoped—by wiping her mouth with a napkin. She wasn't sure why, but Tsrugua-san's genuine smiles unnerved her far more than his gentlemanly smiles, even the Extra Sparkly version. Somehow… the normal smiles felt more special, as if they were reserved just for her. Mentally, she berated herself for the thought, smashing it down with all the other ridiculous things that sometimes flitted through her scattered mind.

They ate in silence for a few minutes, Kyoko, who'd finished her ramen, was mentally reviewing the notes she had to study for an exam when she got home. Suddenly, something was happening to her right hand, left innocently on the table while she thought about school. Something unexpected, horrifying, and wonderful all at once: Tsurugua Ren was sliding his fingers across the top of her hand and folding it into his.

_Tsuruga-san is holding my hand,_ Kyoko thought numbly, staring at her fingers for a moment as if they didn't belong to her. _Tsuruga-san is holding my hand... _

_It's… not as bad as it should be..._

_Yes, but—_

_Come on, you've noticed that he has nice hands. _

_He has done hand modeling before. I saw it on Yashiro-san's schedule when I was his substitute manager. _

_That isn't the point! He's holding your hand! Snap out of it!_

She made a twitching motion as if to pull back, ready to offer her apologies. Clearly he was reaching for something that she couldn't see—a crumb, a speck of dust, a loose thread on her sleeve—and his hand had somehow gotten tangled up in hers. Inexplicably, however, he held tight, resisting her attempt to disengage.

"Game face, Mogami-san," he said in a low voice, his eyes darting quickly to his left. "I think there are some customers that are about to be tiresome. Maybe we can convince them not to bother us?"

Kyoko also glanced to the left and saw a small group of older teen girls at a table a few yards away, all giggling intensely and darting longing looks at Ren. She peeked at her hand again, still claimed by his in a firm, yet gentle hold. Her mind came up with the obvious, and she felt her cheeks burning again.

"You… you want to pretend you're on a date?" Her mouth felt dry, and the words seemed to bounce around her head before leaving her mouth, making them sounding absurdly shaky.

He smiled. "Unless you have a better idea?"

Kyoko closed her mouth. Setsu and Cain Heel exuded such unapproachable auras that they might have been safe, but Tragic Marker shooting had ended earlier that day and neither of them were dressed as the Heel siblings, but in normal clothes. They could just leave, but—Kyoko glanced at Ren's bowl—he really needed to eat more.

"I… I'm not really dressed for a date," Kyoko said doubtfully, glancing down at her brown skirt and blue cardigan. _Plain and no sex appeal_, hissed a tiny Shotaro voice. She frowned but couldn't argue. A date should be special. She imagined herself on a date with a glittering princess-style dress that swept the ground when she walked.

"I think you look nice," Ren said simply, then gave her one of Those Looks: the tender affection in his face burning away even Shotaro's malicious whispers. "Besides, if we act it, we don't need the costumes." He squeezed her hand gently and held her gaze. "Look at me as if you wouldn't want to be with anyone else in the world."

Kyoko struggled for a moment. Who could she imagine in Tsuruga-san's place to get the correct expression? She first thought of Moko-san, but trying to replace the gently smiling face in front of her with Moko-san's characteristic scowl almost made her giggle, so that was out. She felt, for a moment, a tinge of sadness when she realized she didn't have someone she could substitute in Tsuruga Ren's place. She had people she liked; even people she loved, but none of them were people she could imagine across the table from her, looking at her the way he was.

In the end, she was left with herself, with the piece of her soul that craved the respect and friendship of this man so much that it made her ache with longing. _No,_ she thought in a sudden panic, _I can't do it. I can't let him see._

Ren loosened his grip on her hand a bit, and began stroking his thumb across the backs of her knuckles. Then, perhaps sensing at all her muscles had liquefied, he gently brought her hand to his lips, brushing a feather light kiss across her skin.

Kyoko felt woozy for a moment, as if she had temporarily left her body and was floating above the table, looking down at their clasped hands.

_Focus, _she told herself, giving a mental shake. _Give it your all like Tsuruga-san is. His acting is believable enough to be real. What about yours?_

Slowly, than with a little more ease, Kyoko relaxed into a smile, imagining—not with a little pain—that this was real and that she loved this man and was loved in return, trying to remember all the romantic movies she'd ever watched. How did girls in those movies act on dates? She leaned forward, resting her chin on her free hand and... just looked at him. Her inner Kyoko was writhing in embarrassment, but a glimmer of pride in Tsuruga-san's eyes made her more determined than ever to keep it up.

"So, tell me about your day, Kyoko," he said, tilting his head and giving her another dazzling smile.

Kyoko barely blinked at the intimate use of her given name. It was appropriate, given their current act.

"It was busy," she admitted, needing to look away or risk being blinded by the open fondness in his gaze. She looked instead at their clasped hands again. Ren was still rubbing his thumb gently over her hand. Just looking at it made gooseflesh erupt all over her skin. "I... uh, had to act as this guy's sister for most of the morning."

Ren's eyes twinkled. "Oh yes? And was that interesting?"

Feeling a bit braver, Kyoko continued the conversation, even attempting some levity which Ren even generously laughed at. After some time, she noticed that the tables where the giggling girls had sat were empty. Their ruse must have worked. She'd been enjoying the conversation so much, she hadn't even noticed when they left.

"Oh," she said, pulling her hand from Ren's clasp. It felt cold, even curled up in her lap.

Ren's face went oddly blank when he followed her gaze. Silence descended on the table, and Kyoko squirmed with the awkwardness of it. She imagined that her senpai was trying to find a way to break back into normal conversation and was relieved when the waitress came to take their bill.

They walked quietly to his car. Kyoko wished he would turn on the radio, or say something, even about the weather, just to fill the pounding silence. She peeped at him from beneath her bangs, but he didn't have that dark look on his face that she associated with anger simmering just below the surface. If anything, he seemed... sad. But that had to be wrong. Was he perhaps dwelling on one of those dark things that Kyoko had begun to suspect haunted him when playing Cain Heel?

"Thank you... for dinner," she said after a moment, determined to steer him out of his funk, if only while they were in the car.

Ren blinked and glanced at her, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. "You're welcome. It was my pleasure. I haven't had ramen in months. It was very good."

The atmosphere was a bit lighter inside the car by the time he pulled up to the Darumaya.

Kyoko bit down on her bottom lip and grabbed his hand before her courage failed her.

Ren looked at her, surprise evident in his wide eyes.

"I... I just wanted to say how happy I am to be your friend, Tsuruga-san," she said, blushing so much she was sure her face rivaled the hated Love Me uniforms. She gave his hand a quick squeeze and let it go, determined not to let him pull away first. She didn't think she could bear it—

Ren's hand came gently across her cheek, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. The tender expression on his face stole her breath away. Somewhere inside, a new fear began to bloom, a fear born of Shotaro's betrayal, but mixed with a strange longing.

"And I am glad to be yours, Mogami-san," he said, hand falling away. "I will see you tomorrow. Good night."

"Y-yes. Good night..."

Dazed, Kyoko entered the Darumaya and stood for a moment, then, smiling to herself for no apparent reason, began to prepare for the night.

* * *

konbu: dried sheets of seaweed broken up and stirred into ramen while the broth is simmering. It softens into edible bites once the ramen is finished. Can be found at most Asian food markets.


	5. Kuu versus Shotaro

**Spoilers through Vol 19, chapter 114.**

**A/N:** I've been rereading the series lately, and I'd forgotten how much I adored Kuu. So after reading this chapter recently, I really wanted Kuu to confront Shotaro, in a more-or-less classic "dad-protecting-his-little-girl" scene. Here's the result! Apologies if I got any of the addresses wrong. I flipped through the chapter again, but couldn't find one instance where Kuu actually calls Kyoko by name, by Mogami-san or anything.

* * *

"One more thing before I go…" Kuu said, looking at Lory and Ren with renewed sobriety. The levity of the past few minutes faded. Inside, though, he could still feel a warm glow of triumph that he'd convinced his son to film a video letter to his mother as his true self.

"Eh?" Lory grinned at him, apparently feeling the effects of the triumph of a family reunion as well.

"That girl…" Kuu glanced up at Ren noticing the slight widening of his son's artificially dark eyes. He still wasn't quite sure that the President was right about Kuon and Kyoko—or Ren and Kyoko, he corrected himself. Kyoko may have played a very compelling Kuon, but she didn't know him yet. That she was close to Ren seemed obvious, but Ren's feelings were a little harder to determine. Could the President be right in that Ren was starting to view her as more than a kouhai?

He was getting distracted. Swirling a finger to catch a few stray crumbs in the Kaki-P snack bag, Kuu caught the President's eye again.

"What happened to that girl? To make her like she is, I mean."

Now there were definitely looks exchanged between the President and Ren.

"I know a little," Kuu said quickly. "During the Kuon training, she let slip that she… never had a loving parent. But… I don't know. Her… um… issues—some of them anyway—seem to be more recent."

"That…" Ren had an odd expression on his face, half sadness, half irritation. "That is something she'll have to tell you herself."

Kuu looked at Lory, but the older man only inhaled on his cigar and remained silent, eyes thoughtful.

Later that evening, when he and Kyoko were enjoying his last night in Japan, Kuu brought up the subject as delicately as possible. He hoped it was a good time. She seemed happy after his asking her to call him "Dad" and his subsequent lecture about her not knowing everything about acting. It was as good a time as any for personal questions.

"Do you mind…" he said carefully, using his chopsticks to maneuver a large wad of rice into his mouth, "if I ask you how you became interested in acting?"

Kyoko's expression fell. Kuu kept shoveling the food in, watching her face and wondering if he'd made another misstep, like when he'd told her she'd be a good mother.

"If… if it's okay, sensei, I'd… rather not talk about it right now…" Her voice was hesitant and she had that look in her face again, the look she'd worn as Kuon. The one that said she knew she was about to be punished, and she didn't think she could bear it.

"Hey," he said, lightly flicking her forehead with his finger. Her dazed expression left, and he grinned at her. "I won't force you to tell me, but I'm interested to know. Also, now that I'm your father, I ought to know more about you. Whatever got you into the business can't be that awful, can it?"

Her eyes shifted away, and a faint blush rose on her cheeks. "I… I just…" She bit her lip. "I don't want to lose your good opinion."

Kuu eyed the young girl in front of him sadly. _How many times has she tried to earn love by her performance? _He felt a rare surge of anger toward this unknown woman, this so-called mother of Kyoko's. How could a woman scar such a wonderful girl like this?

"Kyoko," he said, intentionally using her name without an honorific, recalling her to her status as his child. The familiarity wasn't lost on her. She peeped up at him with wide, shy eyes. He had to resist the urge to tousle her hair again.

"I promise," he said, holding her gaze, "that whatever it was, I will not think any less of you. A father's job is to unconditionally love his children, no matter what."

Kyoko's eyes filled with tears, and it was a few minutes before she was calm enough to tell her story. But eventually she did. Kuu heard the story of her childhood friend Fuwa Sho whom she'd known her whole life, whom she'd loved her whole life, and how she'd followed him to Tokyo to help him achieve his dreams of stardom. Her voice faltered as she came to the point. How she discovered that he'd been using her and didn't care about her any more than if she was a housemaid and the challenge he'd arrogantly flung at her feet, to get her revenge on him by entering showbiz.

"But I don't… I don't think of him when I act!" she said, sitting up and leaning over the table, her light brown eyes intense in their seriousness. "I've come to love acting for its own sake and for my own sake!"

Kuu could see that she was searching his face for the least sign of disapproval or anger, so he reached across the table and flicked her forehead again.

"Ow!" she sat back with wide eyes, rubbing her head.

"_Baka_," he said fondly around a mouthful of egg. "Even I could tell that you love acting for its own sake."

"So…" Kyoko peeked at him again, twiddling her fingers nervously. "So you don't… disapprove of my reasons for getting into acting?"

"I think," he said, choosing his words carefully, "that if you hadn't loved what you discovered about acting, you wouldn't be here now. Stubbornness and revenge aside, if you hadn't the talent for it, you wouldn't have made it. So, how can I disapprove of the reason—whatever it was—that brought you into my life?"

She blushed again, smiling with pleasure. "It's true…" she said thoughtfully. "I did nearly give up that first day when Sawara-san and Tsuruga-san kicked me out of the L.M.E. office."

Kuu choked on a drink of water. "T-Tsuruga-san kicked you out your first day? I… I thought he was your… senpai?"

She shook her head, her expression growing soft. "Not at first! He made me so angry that I nearly resolved to get revenge on him too."

Kuu laughed out loud. "Okay, now I definitely have to hear the rest of your story."

The rest of the evening passed in laughter and wonder as Kyoko relived her early months as a struggling actress trying to find her way.

#

Kuu's cellphone rang. The limo he was riding in had just pulled out of the hotel parking lot. Behind him, he could still see a sliver of that blindingly pink work uniform. He smiled to himself.

"Hello?"

"Kuu, I found the location of… that person. He is indeed in the studio today, right now in fact."

"Ah, thanks Boss. I owe you one."

"Hmph," said Lory on the other end. "I should think so. I want to know how this encounter plays out."

"It may come to nothing, Boss."

"Let me know either way."

"Will do."

Kuu tapped on the intercom on the limo as he ended the call. "Driver?"

"Yes, sir?"

"Please take me to Queen Records."

"Uh, sir, your flight…"

"We have two hours until the plane leaves," he replied, crossing his legs on the plush seat. "Plenty of time."

"Y-yes, sir…"

His security detail glanced at each other and then at Kuu. "Sir, it would really help us do our jobs if you would let us know changes in your schedule like this," said the senior of the two, sounding stern. "Additionally, I don't like going to an unscouted location. We can't protect you-"

"It'll be fine," Kuu said. "Queen Records is a respectable studio. They don't let anyone just loiter around. It'll be a secure location. Besides, I don't mean to stay there long."

They grumbled a bit more, but eventually sat back and accepted the inevitable.

Kuu watched the passing buildings of downtown Tokyo through the tinted windows, a hard expression crossing his face. Short visit or no, there was a certain someone that Kuu had every intention of meeting.

#

"Sho?" Shoko popped her head into the studio where Sho was hunched over his guitar, trying to work out a particularly difficult passage. He'd had to take a break from recording since his fingers seemed to refuse to want to work on this particular run.

"What?" he called back without looking up, moving his fingers slowly along the strings.

"There's someone here to see you. I think you should take a break."

Sho glanced up. Would Kyoko…? No, she wouldn't. Not so soon after what happened in Karuizawa.

He looked back down at his guitar, annoyed with himself and with Shoko. "Tell whoever it is to go away. I'm busy."

"Sho, it's Hizuri Kuu. I think this is a connection you need."

Sho wrinkled his nose. "Hizuri… Kuu? Never heard of him."

Shoko sighed. "He's a famous Japanese actor who's big news in Hollywood. His stage name when he was here was Shuuhei Hozu."

Sho's fingers paused. Why did that name sound familiar?

"He was best known for his role in _Tsukigomori_, twenty years ago," Shoko said in a would-be casual voice.

Sho's head snapped up. Of course! That's where he'd heard it. All the PR for the new Dark Moon he'd watched had brought up that name over and over again. Could it be that this Hizuri Kuu had some connection to Kyoko?

Sho stood, setting his guitar in its stand. "I'm coming," he said.

#

Fuwa Shotaro looked as arrogant in person as Kyoko had described him. He walked into the room and didn't even bow, just looked Kuu up and down with something like a challenge in his gaze.

_What a punk_, Kuu thought, raising an eyebrow, but somehow he was amused at the same time. He'd met his share of starlets eager to prove they could hold their own with the veterans. Looks like this kid wouldn't be any different.

"So," Fuwa said, settling down on on the sofa opposite Kuu. "You're Hizuri Kuu."

"I am."

"What do you want?"

"Nothing, really," Kuu said, lifting his shaded glasses up and pushing them back into his hair. "I merely wanted to know what your intentions are towards Mogami Kyoko."

Fuwa jerked back, his face a mask of stunned surprise. Then his expression darkened into one of sullen defiance. "What do you care, old man?"

Kuu smiled, resting his ankle on the opposite knee. "I care… because I've happened to take an interest in her career… and further than that, you could say… I've adopted her. Naturally, a father is concerned with any man who treats his daughter like you've treated Kyoko."

An angry flush crossed the young man's face. "Don't talk about things that are none of your business."

Kuu regarded the bleached rock star in front of him with such cool silence that Fuwa began to fidget. "If Kyoko hadn't told me herself what happened on Karuizawa," he said after a moment, "I'd be tempted to label you the kind of twisted bastard that gets off on other people's pain. But you came to her aid when you could have let that Vie Ghoul creep ruin her career. That," he said, staring the young man down, "is not the action of a young man bent on tossing aside a childhood friend like a used tissue."

Fuwa looked away from Kuu's gaze, his face troubled. "I… I'm not going to let her beat me…" he muttered. "But neither am I the kind of guy who's going to let someone take her from me."

Kuu stilled. "So," he said in a dangerous voice. "She's a possession."

"No!" Fuwa scowled. "But she's mine, and she knows it. I intend to make her say it when she realizes that she can't advance as high as I can."

Kuu looked at his watch, then stood, shaking his head. "You… need to grow up, kid. And if I were you, I'd examine those feelings of yours. If you love Kyoko, like I suspect, you'll want to work on gaining her forgiveness. If you're too arrogant to even admit that to yourself, then at least have the decency to leave her alone and let her find her own path, separate from yours."

"I'll live my life however I want," the boy said, almost pouting. It made him look his actual age: sixteen? Seventeen? Kuu would have laughed if that expression didn't mean more pain for Kyoko.

"Just keep this in mind," Kuu said, sliding his shaded glasses back onto his face. "Kyoko has friends who love her and they will not sit by idly if you choose to interfere in her life."

Fuwa scowled. "Is that a threat, old man?"

Kuu smiled. "Not if it's the truth, kid. Now, I have a flight to catch, so I'll see myself out." He paused as he was leaving. "Oh, and one more thing. Having met you, I'm rooting for the other guy."

He closed the door on Fuwa's furious face.

#

Later, Sho sat alone in his studio with his guitar. The difficult run wasn't getting any easier. Maybe he'd have to start all over.

Sho glanced at the notes printed out on the paper but saw only Hizuri Kuu's calm, all-knowing eyes.

"Dammit."


	6. Kyoko versus Mistletoe

No plot spoilers. Just fluff!

Takes place right before Maria's Grateful Party.

* * *

Christmas was rapidly approaching second place on "worst holidays ever" list right behind Valentine's Day. And it was all the President's fault.

"Mo!" Kanae said, watching the retreating back of the latest hapless male L.M.E. member to be caught by her. "That's the sixth time this week! Do they think we're such easy prey?"

Kyoko cast a baleful eye at the clump of mistletoe hanging high above their heads—well out of their reach—and glumly entered the Love Me office.

The mistletoe, like all the Christmas decorations had appeared promptly on December 1 overnight. Now the previously safe sanctum of L.M.E.'s shining hallways was filled with giggling girls of all ages and strutting men who kept their eyes on the ceiling for signs of mistletoe so often that there were several accidents reported within the first week. Worst of all was the bunch hanging right outside the Love Me office. Each time Kanae and Kyoko had to go to the office, there'd been a different male staffer waiting with a flimsy excuse. Kyoko always hung back, reluctant to even approach the vicinity of such a cursed plant with a man hovering around, but Kanae was fearless. She always charged at them, scolded them in a loud voice, and sent them running without anything remotely resembling a kiss.

"Yashiro-san said that Tsuruga-san was unable to get into his dressing room yesterday because of all the women standing around outside his door hoping to trap him under the mistletoe, so he got maintenance to remove it," Kyoko mused. "I wonder if maintenance would do the same for us?"

Kanae snorted. "Unlikely. We're not exactly top priority around here, are we?"

"No," Kyoko sighed. "You're right."

Still, she had to ignore the problem of the mistletoe for now. Kyoko reached into her locker and changed out of her pink uniform into one of Mio's nicer dresses. Director Ogata had arranged for a small Dark Moon cast Christmas party. It was top secret since, if the President found out, it would be blown up into something resembling a circus. On the schedule, it said that pick-up filming was underway. In reality, the director had arranged for a nice dinner to be catered in on the set. It would be one of the few opportunities for all the cast and crew to be together before filming wrapped up in spring. Best of all, since they had the guise of filming, they were all allowed to wear costumes.

Kyoko left her purse in her locker, thinking she would just return to get it after the party. She and Kanae—after checking to see that the cost was clear—exited the Love Me office and went their separate ways: Kyoko to the Dark Moon set, and Kanae was headed home.

The Christmas party ended up being a lot of fun and helped Kyoko remember why she loved the holiday so much. Director Ogata gave everyone a small gift in appreciation of their hard work, and then, when dessert was being set out and all those of drinking age had begun to relax after the influence of their various beverages, he brought out a rented karaoke set. Kyoko laughed and sang along with Momose's rather off-key rendition of "O Come All Ye Faithful" and was surprisingly enchanted by a duet between Kijima and Oohara.

_This is how Christmas should be_, she thought happily, looking around the room. _Time spent with family and friends, not that stupid mistletoe..._

A long, lean body sat down in the chair next to hers. "Having fun?" Tsuruga Ren asked with a smile.

"Oh yes! Didn't Oohara-san sing beautifully?"

They talked for awhile longer, but as the clock edged toward midnight it soon became noisy with the tipsy members of the crew singing rather more loudly than was needed. Ren cocked his head at the door. "You look tired, Mogami-san. Need a ride home?"

"Oh!" Kyoko bit her lip. "I don't want you to go out of your way..."

"It's not," he assured her, sliding back his chair. "You ready?"

She stood and followed him, holding only the little gift that the director had passed out. "I need to get my purse from the Love Me office." She looked down at her costume. "And change."

They slowly walked through the now-quiet hallways of the agency. Kyoko was still in a glow of contentment. Tsuruga-san liked to tease and scold her, but sometimes, like now, she was glad that they could talk like friends... or colleagues, she corrected herself. A "friend" was an equal and she, a lowly kouhai, wouldn't ever be the equal of Tsuruga Ren.

The office was in sight when Ren paused, making an annoyed sound. "Ah, Mogami-san, I left the director's gift at the party."

"It's okay," she said. "I'll get changed while you're getting it."

"Alright," he said nodding. "I'll meet you back here." He turned and strode off, his long legs eating up the distance quickly. She watched him walk for a moment, and then shook her head at her idle thoughts and entered the office.

She changed into her regular clothes, grateful for jeans since her legs had been starting to get cold under Mio's dress, and grabbed her purse, slinging it over a shoulder.

A knock sounded at the door.

"I'm coming!" she called, shutting her locker and hurrying over to the door. "I'm sorry I took so long, Tsuruga-san…" Her words trailed off as she saw who was waiting for her outside, not Tsuruga Ren but a stranger.

"Heeey, Kyoko-chan," he said with a too-big smile. Then she recognized him. Sasaki Mikio. He was a foley artist she'd met by chance on the set of Dark Moon a couple of weeks ago. She'd been fascinated to learn what a foley artist did, and he'd been kind enough to allow her into the studio where he and a couple of other foley artists used anything from wood planks to unlikely objects like noise-making toys to make the sounds that people expected to hear in dramas like Dark Moon. She'd thought him nice enough then, though a little too friendly. He'd started calling her Kyoko-chan almost immediately upon introduction, which Kyoko would have thought rude had he not been so nice to her the whole time they were there. She'd also reasoned it away by realizing he was way older than her, somewhere in his thirties. Didn't Yashiro call her Kyoko-chan?

But the friendly light in Sasaki Mikio's eyes was now unpleasantly close to a leer, and as he leaned toward her, she smelled a whiff of alcohol.

"Um, Sasaki-san, sorry to be rude, but I have to be going..." She stayed where she was, unable to get past him since he loomed in the doorway, leaning against it with one arm.

"Sure, sure," he said, still smiling. "But this road takes a toll, so you'd better pay." He pointed up and Kyoko froze. She'd forgotten about the Cursed Plant!

What would Moko-san do? Kyoko took a deep breath and prepared to charge past him, but he grabbed her arm as she tried to slip by. Kyoko gasped.

"Now that's just rude, Kyoko-chan," he said with a laugh. She smelled more sake. "Come on, give a little kiss. It's bad luck if you don't!"

"Let me go!" she protested, pulling at her arm, but it was no use. Sasaki wasn't a large man, but he was stronger than her, and she couldn't get free. He leaned over her, puckering his lips. Kyoko clenched her fist. If she had to punch a man to avoid this stupid tradition, so be it!

But suddenly, Sasaki wasn't there anymore. Tsuruga Ren seemed to be lifting him up, up and away, and with a none-too-gentle shove, sent the other man careening down the hallway, pin wheeling his arms as he tried to regain his balance.

"You," he said in a dark voice that made Kyoko grateful that it wasn't directed at her, "have had far too much to drink. I think you need to call a taxi home and sober up before I report you for sexual harassment."

Sasaki sat up from where he had tumbled gracelessly down on the floor, rubbing his head. He looked a little more clear-eyed. "Y-yeah, I think you might be right . . . s-sorry, Kyoko-chan . . ."

Ren shot him another glowering stare and the other man gulped and stumbled away.

"Are you okay, Mogami-san?" he asked in a calmer voice, looking a little worried.

Kyoko rubbed her arm. "Yeah. He didn't hurt me. It was just annoying," she muttered, blushing and angry with herself. "That stupid Cursed Plant!" She looked up and froze. She was standing underneath the mistletoe with Tsuruga Ren.

Ren followed her gaze. "Oh," he said. And it seemed a very long time that he stood there, looking up at it.

Kyoko couldn't move. What was he going to do? Her mind flashed to that moment in his kitchen during the Katsuki practice session, that moment when Katsuki had disappeared and that _other man, _the one she'd mentally named the Emperor of the Night, had taken over. Was she going to see _him_ again?

"Mogami-san."

Kyoko squeaked in fright, not daring to look at his face. If the Emperor was looking at her, she would be caught like a deer in headlights unable to move, unable to resist if he decided to embrace her.

"Mogami-san, do you trust me?"

She slowly opened her eyes, peeping up at him through her lashes. The Emperor was nowhere in sight. In front of her was simply Tsuruga Ren with a patient smile on his face.

"Y-yes?"

"Then come here," he said, holding out his hand. Almost as if her hand had a mind of its own, she reached out for him. Before she could blink, he'd pulled her forward and, both hands around her waist, lifted her high into the air.

_WHAT IS GOING ON? _

_He's holding me around my waist! Me! A pure and innocent maiden! The Emperor has me in his clutches_—

"Quit wiggling around so much," Ren said with a grunt. "You won't be able to reach the mistletoe."

Reach the...?

"Oh!" Light finally dawned and still being held aloft by her sempai, Kyoko reached up and grabbed the Cursed Plant. He lowered her back down, and Kyoko felt strangely woozy this close to him, smelling his unique Tsuruga-san scent, and his hands still on her waist. When both her feet were on the floor, he let her go.

"Well," he said in an odd voice. "That ought to help."

"Y-yes..." she said, still feeling a bit dazed, though she couldn't figure out why. Ren took the mistletoe from her and tossed it into a nearby trashcan. Thrusting his hands into his pockets, he turned back to her, his face once more a mask of calm politeness.

"You ready?"

"Uh huh..." Kyoko walked by his side, glancing at his arms out of her peripheral vision. She blushed. She hadn't imagined that Tsuruga-Ren was strong enough to lift her up for so long. A thought struck her and the light of craftsmanship flared in her heart.

She needed to get home and fast. Her Ren doll for Maria would need adjusting.


	7. Kyoko versus tampons

**A/N:** Because I respect men who don't think women's bodies are disgusting.

Also, I use both Kyoko and Setsu here, depending on if she's in character or not. Let me know if anything is confusing. No plot spoilers!

* * *

Living with Tsuruga Ren, even under the guise of Cain Heel, was different than living with Shotaro. For one thing, even though Kyoko made dinner, Cain helped out with the dishes afterward without being asked. Shotaro had never helped with housework of any kind. Ever.

"Thanks for helping, brother," she said, bumping her shoulder into his affectionately.

He smiled down at her, that particular smile that always set butterflies flapping around in her belly.

"A-are you studying the script tonight?" she said, switching the subject as she put the last dish away.

"Yeah," he said, drying his hands, and loping back into the living quarters of the hotel suite. "Read lines with me?"

"Sure. Just let me get changed..." Kyoko had finally found a Setsu-appropriate yukata that she could wear over her more exotic underwear and was eager to try it on while in character.

But it was not to be. In the bathroom she found a small spot of blood in her underwear.

_How annoying,_ she thought with a sigh, washing her hands and ducking under the sink to find her bag of personal items. _At least I keep track on my calender and I knew it was coming on a Setsu day_... Kyoko frowned. She couldn't find her box of tampons... Wait a minute... this was the wrong bag! She distinctly remembered packing tampons in her overnight bag, but this bag was one she usually kept at the Love Me office lockers in case she had to stay late during Dark Moon or Box R filming. She'd taken it home to clean it out and must have grabbed it by accident. Frantic now, she pulled the bag out from under the sink and dumped it out on the floor, fingering through the mess.

Makeup, nail polish remover, hairbrush, hairspray, a scattering of bobby pins, and pantyliners... but no tampons.

"Damn it!" she swore.

"Setsu?" There was a light tap on the door.

Kyoko's eyes widened and she clamped a hand over her mouth. Setsu would never lose her temper or freak out over things that Kyoko would. _Low tension,_ she told herself. _Calm down. How would Setsu react to this situation?_

Setsu stood up, stepping over the mess she had made, and opened the door with her typical languid expression. Cain looked down at her and then over her shoulder at the scattered stuff on the floor.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"Not really," she said with a shrug. "I gotta go to the store."

She turned around and shoved her makeup and other items back into the bag, causally tossing it under the sink. Passing her brother, she called out over her shoulder.

"Need anything while I'm out, brother?"

Cain looked at the clock. It was after midnight. "You're not going out this late." His eyes flicked from the top of her leather corset to the tight leather mini-skirt.

Setsu pouted. "But I need... stuff."

Cain cocked his head. "We just went grocery shopping yesterday. What could you possibly need?"

Setsu put a hand on her hip. Inner Kyoko cringed, but she would not be defeated in this scene, not over something so silly.

"Tampons," she said, as if bored. "I'm out."

"Oh." Cain's face went carefully blank and then he turned and left the room.

Setsu raised an eyebrow and then shrugged. _Guess I won this round,_ Kyoko thought, stunned. _Men are so predicable.._.

Cain emerged from the living quarters wearing his hoodie, and shoving his wallet in his pocket. Setsu stared at him.

"What?" he asked, catching her stare.

"You're actually going?"

"Do you need tampons?" he asked.

"Yes..."

"Then I'm going." Cain opened the door and slouched through it.

When she was sure he was gone, Kyoko indulged in a writhing roll around the floor in utter embarrassment. She had just sent Tsuruga Ren to buy female sanitary products! And worst of all, tampons! Why hadn't she made him get pads instead? But no, Setsu would hate pads. She would use tampons so she could wear her cute underwear without getting them messy.

Kyoko couldn't lose to him! She'd already heard that "no good" sigh from him too many times as Setsu. She wanted to be able to hold her own and... well, tonight at least she had done it. She examined her actions again, but no matter how she tried to second guess herself, she knew that Setsu wouldn't care if her brother had to purchase those particular items. They were lovey-dovey siblings after all... and they wouldn't be uncomfortable about such things. Besides that, even as Kyoko, there were some mundane human matters you couldn't avoid dealing with when you lived with someone else... Kyoko wasn't sure if it was Tsuruga Ren or Cain Heel who took magazines to the bathroom, but she tried not to think about it.

She brightened at a sudden thought. She had seen him in the shower, and now he had to buy tampons for her. They were even! It was done and over with and the embarrassment now would be minimal if it came up again. She nodded to herself, pleased at her growth as an actress.

Still, though, she was grateful for the time alone to collect herself and cool her heated cheeks.

Far later than it should have been, Cain returned to the room carrying four bags.

Setsu folded her arms across her chest and gave him a look. "Brooother... did you go overboard? On _tampons_? I only needed one box."

Cain set down the bags on the table and began unloading them.

"I didn't know what kind to get, so I got one of each." He lifted the first box, squinting at the text. "Unscented, regular, with plastic applicator; unscented, super, cardboard applicator; sport, fresh scent... here's one that's organic... and I got these because they were cute, like you." He lifted out a box that appeared to be a junior set, the really small kind that young girls just starting their periods use. There was a popular female cartoon character on it in a lurid pink color that was strangely familiar. He'd also gotten a range of sizes from the junior ones, to the super maxi sizes that resembled toilet paper tubes.

Kyoko felt the blush that was building up and couldn't do anything to stop it. Instead, she covered it with a giggle. "I wonder what the cashier thought seeing you with all these boxes."

Cain shrugged. "Who cares? You needed them; that's all that mattered to me."

Kyoko dropped her hand, looking at him. He really meant that. He wasn't embarrassed in the least. Feeling oddly touched for some reason, she sorted through the boxes, wrinkling her nose at the pink cartoon one, and put the ones she wouldn't need back into the bags.

"You can take those back. I won't need them."

Cain gave her one of his looks.

She didn't budge. "I don't need more than one! Do you know how many tampons are these boxes? This one box alone will last me at least a few months."

"Take two, just in case."

She opened her mouth to argue, but he gave her his puppy-eyes expression. She looked away, throwing up her hands. "Fine," she sighed and plucked up another box. "Happy?"

"Only if you are," he said, stroking her cheek.

* * *

_* yukata_ - a light kimono, typically worn in Japanese inns after bathing. Kyoko is wearing one when she meets Reino in Karuizawa. Ren wears one several times in the Heel arc after bathing. Hotels usually provide them, like some American hotels provide robes.


	8. Confession is good for the soul

Slight spoilers for chapter 184.

* * *

Kyoko felt herself drawn toward wakefulness and lay still for a moment, wondering through the haze of half-sleep what had awoken her since she didn't hear her alarm. Alarm. Wait, no Setsu didn't use an alarm... Becoming more awake as she considered the possibility of being late (who was she kidding, they were always late), Kyoko sat up in bed to squint at the clock.

Only then was she aware that the bed opposite hers was empty and Tsuruga-san was walking around the darkened hotel room. No, not Tsuruga-san, she corrected herself, seeing the dim outline of a ragged hoodie and tight black jeans—Cain Heel. She glanced at the clock. It was a little after three o'clock in the morning.

As groggy as she was and even without her wig or fake piercings in, Kyoko managed to pull Setsu's personality on like a loosely tied yukata.

"Brother?" she yawned, stretching her arms over her head. Then she saw that Cain was getting ready to go out the door, and she scrambled out of bed. "Where are you going?"

She couldn't see his face, but she could sense his hesitation. "Nowhere in particular, Setsu."

She padded over to him, crossing her arms over herself in the chill open air. He stroked her cheek with the backs of his fingers, but his voice seemed... sad? That couldn't be it. Her brother was never sad. Angry, petulant, sullen, and surprisingly affectionate at times, but never sad.

"Go back to bed. I'll be back soon."

"No, I'll go with you." Kyoko hurried into the bathroom and donned her wig, only poking her head out once to see if he'd left without her. He hadn't. He stood by the door, nearly impossible to see, his outline disappearing into the nighttime darkness of the room. She finished her preparations quickly, deciding to only apply a little mascara and not the false eyelashes that she usually wore.

Pulling on her long, spider-webbed coat, she tromped to meet her brother in her high-heeled boots. He didn't say anything but left the room, Setsu right behind.

In the elevator, she stole discreet glances at him in the reflective doors, but his face was unreadable, if a little tired. She wondered what this nocturnal excursion would be for. Cigarettes? She pursed her lips in an effort to keep her disapproval off her face. If he was hungry, he should eat something, not smoke. To her surprise, however, Cain ignored the convenience store across the street, and kept walking, black coat flapping with the length of his stride. Kyoko followed at a near jog to keep up. As they passed a dark alley, she felt a sudden fear. This was too much like their first evening as the Heel siblings—what if they ran into more thugs? She wasn't worried about Tsuruga-san's safety so much as his sanity. That look on his face when she'd told him he'd been smiling... and, of course, that incident with Murasame on the set the other day. The fight that hadn't been scripted, and the fall that could have seriously injured them both.

To her surprise, they walked quite a ways, long enough for Kyoko to start getting tired again, until finally Cain stopped in front of... was it a church? Kyoko cocked her head. It wasn't a Shinto shrine, it was a church—a Christian church.

Cain glanced at the sign. "Read it for me, Setsu?"

"Ah, yes..." She said, startled. In her surprise, she'd nearly broken character. "It says that it's the Catholic Church of this district... it's called... Guardian Angel..." She trailed off, feeling a whisper of gooseflesh ghost across her skin.

Cain grunted. "Not Anglican, but it'll do, I guess." He walked up the steps and tried the door.

Kyoko watched him, a little relieved. So this was some acting exercise then? It made sense that Cain Heel would be Anglican. After all, he was born and raised British. What did that make her then? She hesitated. Setsu's whole world was her brother, so anything her brother professed, she would too. Still, it made Kyoko a bit nervous, entering a church under these circumstances... they were lying, to an extent, by acting. But maybe the church would be closed...

"Setsu, are you coming?" Cain asked, waking her out of her reverie. He stood half inside the church already. Apparently, it wasn't closed.

"Yes, brother," she said with a mental sigh, and climbed the stairs.

The room immediately inside was dimly lit. She could see that they were in some kind of foyer, with dark shapes that might have been furniture and then, looming out of the darkness, the stone face of a saint, hands raised in blessing. Setsu clutched at Cain's coat sleeve in reflexive fear. He smiled down at her.

"It's been awhile since we went to confession. I'm nervous too."

She smirked in reply, inwardly grateful for the in-character excuse he came up with and let go of his sleeve, but stayed close enough to occasionally brush his shoulder with her own.

His shadowed eyes stared at the unfamiliar surroundings for a moment, his face unreadable. Then he strode across the foyer to a set of double doors and tugged them open. Kyoko gasped, despite her best efforts to keep Setsu's indifferent mask on. The sanctuary was a large, cathedral-like space. Come to think of it, the building itself was probably a cathedral. She just hadn't noticed outside in the dark.

It wasn't nearly as creepy in the sanctuary as it was in the foyer. The saints instead seemed like friendly guides, the stained glass dark but still beautiful. No one appeared to be inside the sanctuary. Cain hesitated for a moment, genuflected quickly before the cross and then sat down in a pew. Kyoko copied his motions as smoothly as she could, wondering if she should have brought her purse. Did Christian churches take money for prayers like the local shrines did? Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to leave a prayer for Corn here as well. She couldn't see how she could manage to do that and stay in character though.

She peeped at Cain, who was leaning on his elbows, his eyes narrowed in thought, almost glaring. His hands were squeezed together. She laid a hand gently on his knee and he jerked at her touch.

"Brother, is something wrong?"

He stood up abruptly. "This was a waste of time," he growled.

At that moment, footsteps sounded from the front of sanctuary. A middle-aged man in a black cassock poked his head through a door and smiled when he saw them.

"I'm sorry I didn't know you were here," he said with a bow. "I was in the back reading. Welcome to our parish. I'm Father Takeuchi. Is there something I can do for you?"

Setsu hesitated, but glancing at her brother, his face again hard to read, so she began to translate the priest's words into English.

"Oh, you speak English?" said the priest, switching to that language. "I speak it as well. Please, tell me what you need?"

Setsu remained silent. She had no idea why they were here.

Cain shifted, his eyes darting to the side. "Will..." he said in a hoarse voice. "Will you hear my confession, Father?"

#

The confessional was silent for a moment. Ren held his breath. He felt stripped bare, scrubbed raw like he'd been scraped from the inside out with sandpaper.

Had he ever stated it all out loud like that before? No, not to anyone. Not even the president knew everything. For a moment, it felt like he'd expelled a large, noxious cloud of smoke, and it was filling the empty silence of the confessional with its poison. This was a mistake. What had possessed him at three in the morning to unburden his soul? He rubbed his face with his hands, hiding a rueful smile. At least his mother would be happy to know where he was. His mother was the American-born daughter of Russian immigrants and had been raised in the orthodoxy of the Eastern church. Their family hadn't attended church every week as he was growing up—his parents' demanding schedules didn't permit it—but he had fond memories of attending services for Easter and Christmas as a child. Maybe that's why he felt compelled to come here for the first time since he was fifteen years old, an anchor to happier days, something to remind him, to pull him back from the brink.

He could have killed Murasame the other day. Ren clenched his shaking hands against his knees. This darkness within frightened him. What if he couldn't control it?

The silence was overpowering. Ren needed to leave before the priest figured out who he was—

"It seems to me," the priest said in a thoughtful voice, "that this persona you're acting as now for this movie is merely the other side of the coin from your other persona."

"What?" Ren frowned.

"Well, you said that you created your, ah, 'gentleman' persona—your T-san—to counteract the person you were, cultivating a calm demeanor, a smiling face, and everything pleasant to face the world. But this persona you wear now, this CH-san as you call him, is not your true self either."

Ren sat frozen, hardly daring to breathe.

"This CH-san is perhaps an extreme reflection of what you might have become, had you not come to your senses; had your conscience not stricken you with the absolute knowledge that you had to change or forever lose yourself. But CH is not who _you_ are, my son. He is but a... an alternate path, you might say. A poor reflection of what might have been. But then again, so is this other man you pretend to be, this T-san. He is the opposite, always the gentleman. He too, is not your real self. The question you need to ask yourself, my boy, is once you strip away these two men, who are you?"

Ren felt the despair he'd been shoving down all day blossom in his gut again. "I'm..."

"No," said the priest, with a firm voice. "You're not that boy anymore, the one who was growing up too quickly, the one who was hurt by the cruel words of others and could only take so much before he lashed out, the one who was the unwitting cause of your friend's death. No, that is not your true self either. Your true self, my son, is somewhere between T-san and CH-san. Neither angel, nor demon, but just a man with the same capacity for good and evil that we all have." The priest paused. "You may think him gone, this true self of yours, but I think he is merely waiting. Not waiting in ambush for a moment of weakness, like you seem to think, but biding his time, waiting for his cue to come on stage. In fact, I would venture to say that he is what brought you here tonight... for am I guessing correctly that your CH persona is not a frequent church attender?" There was a smile in the priest's voice.

"My son," the priest said after a moment. "I think your confession tonight has involved only small sins, of which you are already aware by your own admission, and which you are striving to correct. I think by far the bigger sin is the one you haven't confessed: the sin of unforgiveness."

"I... I don't recall..."

"You," the priest's voice was gentle, "have yet to forgive yourself."

#

Setsu was more than half asleep, curled up on the pew, when her brother touched her shoulder. She looked at him quickly, searching his face for the distress he'd been unwilling to speak of earlier, but it was gone. He looked... calmer, lighter, somehow.

Perhaps confession really was good for the soul.

She stood up, exiting the pew, prepared to follow her brother out. Father Takeuchi gestured back toward the confessional booth.

"Young lady, would you like to confess as well?"

Setsu froze.

Cain touched her arm. "You don't have to if you don't want to, Setsu."

Setsu glanced at the priest. "No... I'll follow my brother's example."

Something in Cain's eyes flickered, but he nodded. "I'll wait out here, then."

Kyoko followed the priest back to the confessional and entered, unsure of the protocol. _Maybe_, she thought,_ in this situation, the truth is the best_.

"I... I'm sorry, Father," she whispered, hands clenched against her thighs, "but I'm not Catholic and I don't really know what I'm doing... " She paused. She had been about to reveal that she was here as an actress, but that would complicate things if Cain had confessed in-character, not to mention the secrecy of Tsuruga Ren being Cain Heel. In the end, she settled for simply leaving out part of the story. "I... have a childhood friend that I want to pray for, but I don't know how Christians do it. I... I don't have any money with me, but I can bring some back..."

"Child, child," she heard the priest say through the obscuring screen. "God hears prayers of the lips and of the heart. There is no need to give Him money. If you don't feel comfortable confessing, that is perfectly fine. I won't force you to do something you're not comfortable with. Who is your friend? I would be honored to pray for him."

"His name..." Kyoko felt a warmth spread from her heart until it blossomed on her face in the form of a smile, "is Corn."

#

When she emerged a short time later, thoughtful and happy to have a new prayer that she could say for her friend without having to go to the shrine, they bid the priest a goodnight. He made the sign of the cross over them, and they left, closing the door softly behind them. Cain walked down a couple of steps, hair falling down over his eyes as he stood still and simply breathed in the night air. Setsu stood at the top of the steps, turning slightly to see indeed that the church was a large building, somehow a blend of Western and Eastern architectural styles.

"Setsu," Cain said, and she turned around to see him standing with his back to her, arms bent so that his hands were reaching over his shoulders toward her.

"What?" she asked, not understanding.

"Come here. Grab my hands," he said, and there was something unfamiliar in his voice, something strange...

Bewildered, she came up behind him and put her hands in his, then she yelped in surprise as he grabbed her hands, pulling her forward so that her arms were wrapped around his shoulders and suddenly he was off and running, with Kyoko dangling and bouncing a good foot off the ground.

"What are you doing... brother?" she gasped, hanging onto him for dear life, and he reached back, jerking her legs up and around his waist until she was riding piggyback.

"You looked cold. So I'm getting us back to the hotel faster than you can walk," he said, but there was again that strange note in his voice. She caught a glimpse of his face as they passed under a street light, and saw, with amazement, that he was grinning. That strangeness in his voice... she recognized it now. It was playfulness. The reason she hadn't been able to identify it earlier was because neither Cain Heel or Tsuruga Ren were ever playful. Just _who_ was giving her a piggyback ride at three o'clock in the morning? Through Tokyo of all places?

The absurdity of the situation made her start giggling in a manner she wasn't sure was all Setsu, but she found she didn't care that much.

She asked him to stop running a moment later as her head was beginning to whirl from the bouncing, so he simply walked and inner Kyoko's embarrassed writhing about having her legs wrapped around a man faded into the background as Setsu simply enjoyed being carried against the warmth of her brother. She was almost asleep by the time they reached the hotel and when he set her down, she wobbled, yawning. He caught her against him as they walked down the corridor toward their room.

"Poor Setsu," he said twirling his fingers through her hair. "You get so little sleep because of me."

"You are the worst of big brothers," she agreed, stumbling into the room as he held the door open for her.

"Setsu?"

"Hmm?" She turned, only to be caught in her brother's arms, held gently against his chest. She froze, wondering if this was like _that_ night, when his hands had been so cold and he couldn't stop trembling... But no, the hands that were wrapped around her were warm, and he seemed solid and strong, just like he should be.

"Thank you for coming with me," he whispered next to her ear. "I'm glad you're here."

She smiled up at him. "Where else would I rather be, brother?"


	9. Ren versus tampons

**A/N:** "Freedom its2l8" requested Ren's POV from my "Kyoko vs. Tampons" drabble and this is the result.

* * *

_"She has a sense of humor... and brains... life wouldn't be dull. One would wake up, and there would be a whole day full of jolly things to do. And then we would come home and go to bed... and that would be jolly too."_

- Lord Peter Wimsey, Strong Poison by Dorothy L. Sayers

* * *

Ren couldn't remember the number of girlfriends he'd dated off the top of his head. But he could definitely remember that none of them had ever asked him to buy tampons for them. Then again, he hadn't lived with any of them either. He couldn't help but grin at the irony of it all. He was living with the woman he loved, who—in all likelihood—didn't even seem to notice him as a man... and now he was buying things for her that many husbands wouldn't be caught dead buying.

Ren walked through the store in the hotel where he and Kyoko were staying as the Heel siblings. An elderly woman spotted him and scuttled away, eyes darting away from his lanky, unkempt figure. He barely noticed, however. Why, he wondered, did he feel so... happy? So much so, that it was a struggle to keep Cain Heel's scowl off his face.

He found the ladies sanitary products aisle and turned down into it. He belatedly realized he wasn't supposed to be able to read Japanese, but there was no one here from the Tragic Marker crew, so he supposed it hardly mattered.

He frowned at the shelf in front of him. How did women even begin to start choosing from this chaos? He saw at least five different brands, all advertising different levels of absorbency, shapes, and sizes. A woman already in the aisle was giving him an odd look, but he found he didn't mind. Kyoko needed them... and... that made him happy. Ren scratched the back of his neck, puzzled with his bewildering emotions. Why should he feel happy about being made to purchase female sanitary products? By all rights as a man, he should be embarrassed. But... he wasn't.

Was he happy because she trusted him enough to get such a personal product? Kyoko would not have mentioned them if she hadn't needed them; she wasn't the type to make him run an errand in the middle of the night just for a laugh at his expense, even while in character as Setsu. Perhaps especially while in character as Setsu. Ren was certainly happy that she was trusting him a lot more, but that wasn't it, not completely.

He lifted his hand, picking a lurid pink box off the shelf that reminded him very much of a certain section of the L.M.E. agency, and dropped it in his basket.

_"_Oh, right here, honey. Just a sec."

He turned his head, hearing some idle chatter pass by the front of the aisle and saw a young couple shopping. The young man was pushing the cart and the young woman—his wife? girlfriend?—was placing items in the cart. She jogged past where Ren was standing and grabbed one of the boxes, taking it back to toss in the cart. It was obviously a mix of items for them both, not just her groceries, not just his.

_Maybe that's it,_ he thought, grabbing the same brand that the woman had just picked and tucking it in his basket. _Maybe my doing this makes my own wishes seem more real... If I close my eyes, I can imagine that instead of coming home to my sister, I'm coming home to my girlfriend, lover... wife._ The idle thought danced in front of him, and he almost laughed. Marriage? Tsuruga Ren the ultimate bachelor? He was twenty-one, for heaven's sake. He had way too many things he wanted to do before he got married—_if_ he got married... But somehow he couldn't completely banish the idea from his mind... coming home from a shoot with Kyoko, curling up on the couch with her... feeling the press of her mouth against his. He hurriedly grabbed another box of tampons and read it with an intensity he usually reserved for memorizing scripts. He couldn't follow that train of thought, not while she was so close to him. Not when she wasn't ready, when her wounds were still so near the surface.

He filled his basket with enough tampons to serve the monthly needs of small army of women and checked out, inwardly enjoying the stares he was attracting. His intimidating appearance—especially with his dark glower—was so perfectly the opposite of all the rather fussy-looking tampon boxes that the cashier's face was twisting with an effort not to laugh.

He rode the elevator to their floor, eager to be home. _Home._ That was a word he hadn't used in awhile. Even the apartment he kept as Tsuruga Ren wasn't quite home to him. It was just the place he slept in between shoots. He supposed that the sprawling house somewhere in California where his mother and father lived, waiting for him, was home. But... he opened the door to the suite, loving the way Kyoko's eyes lit up at the sight of him (or maybe it was for the tampon boxes, he couldn't be sure).

_This may be temporary, _he thought, as Setsu began to scold him for getting too many boxes, _but when she's here, it's home to me._ And maybe that was the heart of the matter.


	10. Kuu vs the Hollywood Gossip Chain

**Spoilers through volume 19.**

I couldn't help but wonder how the Hollywood gossip chain would deal with Kuon Hizuri's disappearance. Then that led to other thoughts about Kuu's promotion of his movie and… this fic was born.

I didn't write it in a traditional style. I tried to give it a feeling of someone flipping through newspaper clippings and articles and tv shows.

Note: I made up my own website and magazine names. If they actually happen to be real, that was totally unintentional!

* * *

_**Big Screen Reviews Magazine**_

**Kuu Hizuri Promotes New Movie in Japan! **

Hollywood action star, Kuu Hizuri, has just returned from the country of his birth where he promoted his new action movie already garnering critical acclaim here in the U.S.

"_Take the Lead_ is a great start to a new franchise," says veteran critic Mel Silverston. "Hizuri manages to create a protagonist that is likable and tough. Men will want to be him and all the women will want him. I'm predicting a box office smash hit that we haven't seen since the heyday of _Die Hard._ Step aside Mel Gibson. Think fast, Bruce Willis. The new action star in America is actually Japanese."

#

_**GossipReel Blog**_

Kuu Hizuri's new movie _Take the Lead_ is stirring up discussion about Hizuri's filmography, but one thing I haven't seen lately is conversation about Hizuri's son. Doesn't anyone else remember that scandal about four years back? Hollywood actors are known for their family problems and Kuu Hizuri's squeaky clean image was tarnished big time.

But the thing is… it's surprisingly hard to find information about Kuon Hizuri. Where did this kid disappear to?

_Leave a comment | 151 comments_

#

_**Read All About It Weekly**_

Kuon Hizuri is a name most Americans haven't heard of and probably can't pronounce correctly, but here in Tinsel Town it was ubiquitous with the usual messy Hollywood child star behavior.

"He was nothing more than a selfish, spoiled brat. I was happy to have him off my set," says long-time director Harrison Lowe (see page 20 for a list of Lowe's other altercations with famous stars).

"I thought he was a diamond in the rough. Enormously talented" says Mia Castillo, executive producer of such dramas as _Ghosts of Our Past_, "but lacking the discipline that a professional needs. I felt sorry for him, honestly."

Of course, being the son of famously talented Japanese American actor Kuu Hizuri is a tough burden to bear. But what this reporter wants to know is what happened to him?

Four years ago, there was a steady stream of stories about the kid, and none of them good. Kuu and wife mega-model Juliena managed to keep the worst out of the press with a flock of lawyers waving minor rights violations around, but enough tidbits slipped through that makes it clear that some things were not hushed up enough.

Kuon Hizuri allegedly used his martial arts skills to beat five unnamed victims to a pulp. Where are the victims? Why haven't they come forward? But more importantly, how did this kid escape jail time? There are no records that this reporter could discover of a boy of Kuon's age and description (and let's face it, how many blond-haired green-eyed kids of Asian descent do you see everyday?)

Yes, there is a scandal here folks, and more people should be talking about it…

#

_**The Dish **_

_Starring your hosts Dana Ahern and Marc Ballantino_

"So, the movie looks good. I'm going to see it Christmas Day with the family."

"You're going Christmas Day? That's a little weird, Dana."

"What? No way. We do it every year. It's so much fun."

"Well it does look like you'll have a good time. _Take the Lead_ is getting rave reviews from early viewings. Speaking of _Take the Lead_, Kuu Hizuri has been promoting his movie all over the U.S. and even went overseas to Japan for a brief tour."

"That's right, but you know, Marc, I've heard some interesting rumors…"

"Ooh, do tell!"

"The talk about _Take the Lead_ is renewing interest in Kuu Hizuri and his family. Namely, the missing son and the question that everyone is starting to ask: Where is Kuon Hizuri?"

"Oh yeah, I do remember that. That was awhile back. What happened to him?"

"That's the thing, Marc. No one knows! It was hushed up four years ago and then the kid just disappeared!"

"People just don't disappear. Especially not family of celebrities."

"I managed to dig up the only explanation given at the time by the Hizuri family spokesperson who said that Kuon would be taking an extended break from acting to visit family and focus on his studies. It was a two-line bit stuck at the bottom of an article. Marc, that was four years ago. He'd have to be, what, 21 by now? He'd be out of school. Where is this kid, now a man? Why hasn't he returned to his family?"

"Maybe he went to college?"

"Possible, but that line about visiting family stuck out to me. And look at Kuu Hizuri's tour in Japan. It was barely a week. He went on a couple of talk shows in Tokyo, did a few interviews, a handful of photoshoots, but other than that, he's nowhere. What kind of tour is that?"

"So you suspect… what?"

"I think that four years ago Kuon was causing too much of a ruckus here in the States. That image the Hizuris project?"

"Oh yeah, the 'we're an all-American' family kind of thing? Ugh! So fake!"

"Mmm-hm! I think that Kuon was ruining that image so they shipped him off to Japan. Kuu was born in Kyoto; he probably has family there still. I think Kuu didn't go on tour to promote his movie in Japan—it's not even being released there until February of next year! I think he went there to check up on his son and since the visit was so short, it probably didn't go well."

"And that's the Dish on the Hizuri family! Next up, Paris Hilton is at it again! We'll discuss every detail of what the hotel heiress has been doing on vacation."

#

_**Tokyo, Japan. President Takarada's mansion.**_

Lory glared at his latest dating sim game. If Aimi went to the dance with Ryoichi, did that mean that Takao would be angry or jealous? He wanted jealousy. Takao was the far more interesting love-interest vying for Aimi-chan's hand, but he didn't seem to take any bait...

His phone rang.

"Boss, we've got a problem," said Kuu's voice on the other line.

Lory sighed. "Do you have any idea what time it is here?"

A pause on the other end. "Um, well it's 8:00 in the morning here so…"

Lory glanced at his clock, startled. It was nearly four o'clock in the morning. But he'd only started playing the game at ten!

"Never mind that," Lory said quickly, turning his eyes away from the decision he had to make. "What's wrong?"

"The gossip rags have been doing some digging about Kuon," Kuu said, his gloom seeming to seep through the phone like a noxious dark cloud. "They're asking questions and my spokesperson said we can only ignore them for so long. Boss, they're going to ruin his career before he ever returns. He… he may have to stay in Japan because he won't be welcome here! Juli's going to hate me forever! I don't want to sleep on the couch for the next forty years!"

"Calm down. Let me see what you're up against..." Lory said, switching his TV to computer mode. He queued up a few of the usual gossip reports, searching for keyword "kuon" and scanned the contents. Hmm.

"There's only one way to handle this," he said, switching hands on his phone.

"Deny everything?"

"No. The minute you categorically deny every rumor, the more those rumors will spread. What you have to do is play the game, make it a non-story, let it fade on its own. Deflect and redirect."

"Easier said than done."

"Don't worry, I have a few ideas. Get your spokesperson in contact with me. I know someone who could help. And Kuu?"

"Yeah, Boss?"

"Even if this plan should fail, you shouldn't worry so much. Remember Robert Downey, Jr.?"

"Remember him? I still haven't forgiven them for looking me over for the role of Iron Man. But yes, what about him?"

"Not too many years back, he was in treatment for drug abuse. Gossip columnists and Hollywood elite everywhere said his career was over, that no one would give him a role for even a commercial. And now he's the highest paid actor in the United States." Lory paused to let that sink in. "There's always a way to turn things around with enough hard work and determination. If Kuon has to fight for his place in Hollywood when he returns, he'll do it."

"Yeah… thanks Boss. I'll… I'll call my guy and get him in touch with you."

Lory turned his attention back to his dating sim. Alright Aimi-chan… time to make a choice.

#

_**Celebrity Rag**_

_**Starring hosts Candace Woebse, Tim Parasini, and guest Jun Hanari**_

"Good morning, Tim."

"Good morning, Candace. Today we'd like to introduce our guest, Jun Hanari, all the way from our sister station in Tokyo. Welcome to Celebrity Rag!"

"Thank you. It's a pleasure to be here."

"Jun, you've reportedly been inside the Hizuri mansion just outside of LA. What was it like?"

"Are they keeping their kid in a basement somewhere?"

"No, Tim, nothing like that. Seriously, Candace, there's really not much of a story here. Kuu and Juli were perfect hosts. Kuu talked nonstop about his son. I don't think you can fake that kind of adoration. If there's anything weird at all going on with that family, it's how close they seem to be."

"But where is the kid?"

"Well, he's hardly a child any more. He is an adult and has the right to live his life away from his parents if he wishes."

"True, but still, where is he? That's the question everyone is asking."

"The simple answer? He's living his life. Kuu said that he wasn't happy and wanted some privacy away from the Hollywood crush."

"Pics or it didn't happen!"

"Actually, I was allowed to glimpse a muted few seconds of a video letter that Kuon sent them a couple of weeks ago."

"No way!"

"Are you serious? It was real?"

"Oh it was real alright. You can't fake that kind of… well, let's just say the 'kid' has grown up and if he was still in the biz, would probably be gracing the covers of many magazines. Shirtless. Definitely shirtless."

"Muted, you said? But he was definitely moving, and alive?"

"Yes. I think, Candace, that this is an example of what happens a lot in celebrity families. Not everyone likes the taste of the public life. We have plenty of examples of the children of famous actors and actresses who we don't know anything about. Why should Kuon Hizuri be any different? My editor is tired of the story already—because it isn't a story."

"What about the allegations of violence?"

"It's a funny thing about allegations, Tim. People are always so quick to assume the worst, but did you know bullies were targeting Kuon because of his Asian heritage? This 'scandal' should have sparked discussions about race relations in America, but instead we're debating on whether or not a kid getting beat up by racist thugs has the right to defend himself. Unless you've forgotten your history, the United States once put innocent citizens of Japanese ancestry in internment camps against their will during World War II. And what person getting targeted every day by bullies wouldn't eventually want to fight back? There isn't a scandal here, Candace, unless the scandal we're talking about how racism is alive in America."

"That's all the time we have today, Jun. Thank you for coming onto the show. Tim?"

"Next we turn to an interesting discussion on the ratio of white versus non-white protagonists in Hollywood. The numbers are nothing short of scandalous."


	11. First Fight

**A/N:** Future fic. Takes place about 3-4 years into the future of the current manga timeline. No spoilers! You may need to brush your teeth afterwards, though, cause it's pretty syrupy sweet.

* * *

Kuon looked up at the sign for the coffee shop and paused, his reflection catching his eye in the window. He'd stalked out of the apartment in such a blind rush that he hadn't brought a ballcap or sunglasses. If he went in, he was sure to be recognized. He didn't want to deal with fans or paparazzi right now, especially when he didn't have his contacts in.

The practicality of his situation made him grimace and do an about face on the sidewalk. This was stupid. He was hiding like a child. But…he and Kyoko had just had their first fight. A bad one. Strange how fights as a husband and wife were so much different than as sempai and kohai. It was the honesty that surprised him more than anything. Tsuruga Ren the trusted senpai could take the high road, always claiming seniority. But Hizuri Kuon, husband, couldn't do that. He couldn't hide behind a mask with Kyoko anymore, and it scared him sometimes, that level of vulnerability. Scared and thrilled him at the same time.

They'd never fought like that before... It had started over his wanting to do something as a couple next week. She had declined, responding with the only free time she had in her schedule, which didn't fit his free time in his schedule. Things had quickly devolved from there and soon words like poison darts had flown back and forth.

He shook his head as his long legs carried him past a convenience store that they routinely walked to. Strange how it was hard to remember the specifics of the argument even though it had only been a quarter of an hour ago. He did remember with awful clarity his own too-quick temper, rising and rising, and the fear that accompanied it. The fear of losing control, of losing himself. He'd walked out of their home, not trusting himself, and hadn't looked back. The walk down the block had cooled his temper and with the return of sanity was common sense and remorse.

He reached the apartment building and rode the elevator to their floor. Shame made him hesitate at the door. He really needed to apologize. Perhaps he should have bought flowers at the convenience store. Kyoko loved flowers—especially roses. He loved the way her eyes lit up at the reminder of his very first present to her.

Maybe they would go down together. They'd both had time to cool off… maybe they could take a walk and talk things through. He keyed the door and stepped through.

"Kyoko?"

No answer. He walked further into the apartment, glancing around, but didn't see his wife.

"Kyoko?" He walked back into their bedroom, checking the bathroom, and even the guest bedroom, but no sign of Kyoko.

Perplexed and a little worried, Kuon found his cell phone and dialed her number. Her phone rang from the side table next to the couch in the living room. Now really starting to worry, he scanned the kitchen counter. Sometimes when she went out, she would leave him a note with little doodles in the margins.

Nothing.

Running his hands through his hair, Kuon paced the floor, trying to imagine where she might have disappeared to. Ordinarily he wouldn't have worried, but this was their first fight, what if she was still angry at him? He couldn't bear the thought…

Quickly, he lifted his phone again and dialed.

"What?" came an irritated voice on the other end.

"Kanae-san," Kuon said, going over to stand by the window, staring out over the skyscrapers of downtown Tokyo. "Is Kyoko with you?"

"No. I'm on set all day today."

Kuon paused. "You would tell me if she was with you, right? I'm… I'm worried about her."

"No, she's not here," Kanae said. "I'll call you if she shows up though," she added grudgingly.

"_Arigatou_."

He tried a few more numbers: Maria, the Darumaya couple, Chiori… but none of them had seen his wife. The only other person she might have turned to was his father, but his parents were in Los Angeles… surely their fight hadn't been so bad that Kyoko would leave the country?

He leaned against the kitchen counter, head down, worry assaulting him on all sides. Where was she?

His eye caught sight of a leaf that had fallen out of his last batch of flowers. They were starting to wilt in their vase, but Kyoko liked to keep them as long as possible. She always said looking at living things revived her spirits.

Kuon lifted his head, remembering a different time, a different fight, a different place…

_Reflected water from the little stream shines on her face, making her skin luminous in the morning light._

_"Mogami-san, what are you doing out here so early?"_

_Her eyes, large and amber like dark honey, peep up at him shyly. "To recharge," she says, smiling in that way that makes him want to lean down and kiss her._

Kuon raised his head. He knew where she was.

#

He heard her before he saw her. The roof garden of their apartment building wasn't large, but knowing how much Kyoko enjoyed it—a bit of the country in the city—he'd encouraged the building managers to make improvements over the past couple of months. Now there were even a few trees along with numerous flowering bushes, grass, and a stone path walkway. He followed the path and found Kyoko at her favorite spot, next to the fountain that burbled water from the mouth of a mermaid and splashed down into a small pool. She was sitting on the bench in front of the fountain, her face in her hands, crying as if the world was ending.

He quickened his steps and sat down next to her, sliding his arm around her shoulders. She stiffened and uncovered her face, looking up at him in shock through bloodshot, watery eyes.

"You… you came… back?"

The surprise on her face broke his heart. He smoothed a trail of tears off her cheek with a thumb. "Of course I came back. What made you think I would leave forever?"

She lowered her eyes, staring at the crumpled tissues in her hands. "I thought… I thought that my worst fears had finally… that _it_ had happened again… we were… yelling at each other..."

Alarmed at this reminder of her old trauma, Kuon slid off the bench and crouched on the ground so that he was eye level with her. "Kyoko, look at me."

She did so unwillingly, her eyes still leaking tears. He caught her hands, and squeezed them gently.

"Couples fight… it's _normal_. It doesn't mean we love each other less." He held her gaze, willing her to believe him.

"But…" she sniffed, "you... left me."

Kuon closed his eyes. "And I shouldn't have. Please… please forgive me. I… I was afraid of my own temper. You… you of all people should know why."

At that Kyoko hesitantly reached out a hand, tracing his jaw with the lightest of touches. He sighed, turning his head to kiss her hand.

"I've never been afraid of you," she whispered. "I'm not about to start now. Just don't… don't leave like that. Please. Don't… don't turn into Tsuruga Ren."

His eyes widened, realization dawning on him. Leaving was exactly what his alter-ego would have done. In fact, he already had done it once… at Karuizawa when Fuwa had shown up, bragging about rescuing Kyoko from the stalker. Instead of talking it through with her, he'd shut himself up in his room to sulk.

They'd been married for a year, but it seemed that he still had things he had to learn to trust her with.

"I won't. I promise." He tugged on her hand and she came willingly into his arms. They sat on the ground like that for awhile, the fountain's merry trickling a backdrop to the relief swelling in Kuon's heart.

"I love you," he murmured, pressing a kiss on top of her head where it was tucked against his shoulder.

She lifted her chin for a proper kiss, not speaking. Even after so long, she still had trouble saying the "L-word," not because she hated it any more, but because it had become so precious to her. As if she was worried that the more she said it, the more it would wear out.

They left the roof garden a while later, as the sun had started to set and the wind was getting a bit chilly. She made dinner while he helped. He never would be a good cook, but her patience had made him a lot more adept in the kitchen than he used to be. It was nice to have an evening to themselves. Both their schedules had been so full lately that they barely saw each other during the day. This was one rare weekend when they actually spent more time together than they had in a long time. Perhaps that fact alone had led to the fight.

Kuon looked at their joined hands over the dinner table, glancing at the sparkling blue gemstone on her ring that had once been Corn and came to a decision.

"Kyoko, I'm going to ask Yashiro-san to stop filling my schedule so tight," he said, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. "I've been too stressed out with three different shows , all week not to mention prepping for the big Armandy shoot that's happening next week. I think… I think I'm going to drop most of the modeling gigs."

Her eyes widened. "Kuon—!"

"I mean it." He moved his hand up to cup her cheek. He never tired of touching her. "You… us… this is more important than my career. I'm not by myself like I used to be. I have to think of just not what's best for me anymore, but what's best for you; for us. And a full schedule is not good for us. Today proved that if nothing else did."

"I… to tell you the truth, I was thinking the same thing," she said with a quick smile. "Before you came back I told Sawara-san that I want to drop Bo."

Kuon blinked. "But you love Bo." Bo was the one thing she'd kept constant ever since she started at L.M.E. To leave Bo felt like… leaving an old friend.

"I loved Bo for the humorous bits, and now that I landed that role in that new romantic comedy, I won't need Bo to fill that need. Besides," she said, leaning forward, her eyes sparkling with unshed tears, "if you're making a sacrifice, I will too. I… I don't want to lose you, Kuon."

He lifted her hand from the table, brushing his lips across her fingers. "You never will."

Her cheeks flushed pink as if she were the shy girl of sixteen he'd fallen in love with instead of a grown woman of twenty. He was contemplating whether it would be more expedient to carry her back to the bedroom or take advantage of the couch when she squeaked in alarm and ran back into the kitchen.

"I forgot the eggssssss!" she wailed.

Kuon bit his lip to keep from laughing at the woebegone expression on her face. He supposed dessert would have to wait.

-end-


End file.
